Integration of Mobile Technologies with Routine Healthcare
Services in Mozambique
av
José António Nhavoto
Akademisk avhandling
Avhandling för filosofie doktorsexamen i informatik, som kommer att försvaras offentligt
måndag den 12 juni 2017 kl. 13.15, HSM, Musikhögskolan, Örebro universitet
Opponent: Professor Yunkap Kwankam University of Yaounde
Yaounde, Cameroon
Örebro universitet Handelshögskolan 701 82 ÖREBRO
Abstract
José António Nhavoto (2017): Integration of Mobile Technologies with Routine Healthcare Services in Mozambique. Örebro Studies in Informatics 13. Mobile technologies are emerging as one way to help address health challenges in many countries, including in Least Developed Countries. Mobile technology can reach a large share of the population but in order to provide effective sup-port to healthcare services, technology, information collection and dissemina-tion, and work processes need to be well aligned. The thesis uses a design sci-ence methodological approach and mixes qualitative and quantitative data analysis to address the question of, How can mobile technologies be effectively
integrated with routine healthcare services?
The study concerns the design, implementation, and evaluation of a mobile technology-based system, called SMSaúde, with the aim of improving the care of patients with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in Mozambique. The work started with the elicitation of functional and user requirements, based on focus group discussions. An important challenge, as in many mHealth interventions, was the integration with routine healthcare services and the existing IT systems, as well as developing a scalable technical structure. The system has now been in routine use since 2013 in more than 16 healthcare clinics in Mozambique. Eval-uation was done by a randomised controlled study. Analysis of patient records showed that retention in care in urban areas was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group. In a user study both patients and health professionals were very positive to the system. The thesis contributes to research by demonstrating how information system artefacts can be con-structed and successfully implemented in resource-constrained settings. The practical contributions include the designed artefact itself as well as improved healthcare practices and mHealth policy recommendations.
Keywords: mobile technologies, mobile health, mHealth, Least Developed
Countries, Mozambique, mobile phones, information systems artefact, design science research.
José António Nhavoto, School of Business
